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https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/ful...02764217739660
Bushman, B. J. (2018). Narcissism, Fame Seeking, and Mass Shootings. American Behavioral Scientist, 62(2), 229–241. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764217739660
Abstract
For many years, the conventional wisdom was that most acts of aggression and violence stem from insecurities and low self-esteem. The possibility that some mass shooters have low self-esteem, low self-worth, or painful personal insecurities should not lead us to overlook another more likely possibility: that a significant number of mass shooters may have large egos and narcissistic tendencies. This article will (a) describe the psychological concepts of narcissism and narcissistic traits; (b) review previous research on links between narcissism, aggression, and violence; (c) review evidence that some mass shooters exhibit narcissistic traits; and (d) discuss the implications of narcissistic mass shooters for society and the media coverage of their shooting rampages.
For many years, the conventional wisdom was that most acts of aggression and violence stem from insecurities and low self-esteem (Baumeister, Bushman, & Campbell, 2000). Despite this apparent consensus, however, neither a compelling theoretical rationale nor a persuasive body of empirical evidence exists to support the overarching assumption that aggressive and violent people usually suffer from low self-esteem. Nevertheless, this view has been extended to school shooters. Following a series of school shootings in the United States, several organizations (including the U.S. Department of Education) prepared lists of alleged warning signs for identifying possible school shooters, and many of the lists included low self-esteem (e.g., Lord, 1999; O’Toole, 1999).
However, mass shootings are extremely complex events influenced by multiple psychological factors, often acting together, and of course not all mass shooters are the same (Bushman et al., 2016). The possibility that some mass shooters have low self-esteem, low self-worth, or painful personal insecurities should not lead us to overlook another important possibility: that a significant number of mass shooters may have large egos and narcissistic tendencies... Free access.